Oracle-AMD Acquisition Speculation Flares Once Again

Dirk Meyer, CEO of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) on Wednesday denied rumours that Oracle may look to acquire AMD.

"AMD is not for sale, but we are happy to listen to any proposal which is in the interest of our shareholders," Meyer said at an industry conference in Barcelona, as reported Reuters.

The speculation was sparked by comments Oracle CEO Larry Ellison made last month at Oracle's annual financial analyst meeting, in which he said Oracle could soon acquire a chip company in addition to software acquisitions.

But on Wednesday at Oracle's annual stockholders' conference, Ellison reiterated his interest in acquiring additional semiconductor and software companies, moreso than new service offerings.

"My point really was that we are interested in buying intellectual property of all kinds," Ellison said, made according to The Wall Street Journal. "We would be interested in certain kinds of semiconductor companies and software companies. Most of our acquisitions and the bulk of our strategy are in creating and acquiring intellectual property, including chips."

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By acquiring AMD, Oracle would gain access to the chip company's IP portfolio, adding hardware to its software acquisitions and moving closer to end-to-end control of the entire IT stack.

Oracle couldn't be reached for comment Thursday. An AMD spokesperson offered the following comment to CRN: "As a matter of policy, AMD does not comment on speculations or rumors, but I can confirm that AMD is not for sale."